CA Governor’s Race: President Trump endorses Steve Hilton

CA Governor’s Race: President Trump endorses Steve Hilton 

President Donald Trump has endorsed Republican Steve Hilton for California governor, reordering a crowded, wide-open race to lead the nation’s most populous state. Trump posted late Sunday on his social media platform Truth Social that he has known Hilton for years and called the conservative commentator “a truly fine man” who could turn around a state beset with notoriously high taxes. California, Trump wrote, “has gone to hell.” “With Federal help, and a Great Governor, like Steve Hilton, California can be better than ever before!” Trump added. The endorsement — coming about a month before mail ballots go to voters in advance of the June 2 primary — will help Hilton coalesce conservative support in a race with no clear leader. However, Trump is widely unpopular in heavily Democratic California outside his conservative base, and Trump’s backing would become a liability if Hilton faces a Democrat in the November election. Today on AirTalk, we talk about what this endorsement means for the governor's race and if it opens the door for a Republican win. We’re joined by Jon Fleischman, President and owner of Fleischman Consulting Group, a firm that specializes in national, state and local political affairs. He is also the former executive director of the California Republican Party. Also joining is Pete Peterson, dean of the school of public policy at Pepperdine University.

With files from the Associated Press

Trump signs order attempting to stymie mail voting 

President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order to create a nationwide list of verified eligible voters and to restrict mail-in voting. This move swiftly drew legal threats from state Democratic officials ahead of this year’s midterm elections. The order, which voting law experts say violates the Constitution by attempting to seize states’ power to run elections, is the latest in a torrent of efforts from Trump to interfere with the way Americans vote based on his false allegations of fraud. The president has repeatedly lied about the outcome of the 2020 presidential campaign and the integrity of state-run elections, asserting again last week that he won “three times” and citing accusations of voter fraud that numerous audits, investigations, and courts have debunked. So how does mail voting play out in the post-pandemic world, and how has the practice evolved in Los Angeles County? Joining us to break down the process is Bob Page, registrar of voters for Orange County and Vikram Amar, distinguished professor of law at UC Davis.

With files from the Associated Press

Video Game Series: What can research tell us about its impact on the youth?

Following the horrific 1999 Columbine shooting, many debates were had about violent video games and how they were corrupting the youth. Although early research in the field did attempt to corroborate this, further study found no direct relation as previously thought. Although the research has pointed this out, the original stigma has still continued to exist. So at this point, what do we know about video games and their relation to temperament? Is there any truth to it leading to aggressive outcomes? Is there any evidence showing positive benefits to playing video games? For this first segment in our video games series, we’ll look to dig into these questions with Joe Hilgard, a former researcher who has studied video game violence and aggressive behavior, and Bader Chaarani, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Vermont.

We will be carrying special NPR coverage of President Trump's press conference this morning.